Non-medicinal oral contrast in upper abdominal MRI for MR-guided radiotherapy: A scoping review.

Introduction: Using non-medicinal oral contrast agents may aid safe delivery of magnetic resonance image-guided (MR-guided) radiotherapy by improving the ability to visualise and avoid excessive radiation dose to adjacent bowel/stomach. This scoping review aims to map the literature on non-medicinal oral contrasts used in upper-abdominal diagnostic or therapeutic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to find potential candidates for employing in MR-guided radiotherapy and identify gaps in knowledge for further study.

Methods: A scoping review of non-medicinal oral contrast used in upper-abdominal MRI research followed a pre-defined protocol based on Arksey and O'Malley's framework.

Protocol for a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis for risk factors for lung cancer in individuals with lung nodules identified by low-dose CT screening.

Background: Worldwide, lung cancer (LC) is the second most frequent cancer and the leading cause of cancer related mortality. Low-dose CT (LDCT) screening reduced LC mortality by 20-24% in randomised trials of high-risk populations. A significant proportion of those screened have nodules detected that are found to be benign.

Exploring the experiences of cognitive symptoms in Long COVID: a mixed-methods study in the UK.

Objective: To explore the lived experiences and extent of cognitive symptoms in Long COVID (LC) in a UK-based sample.

Design: This study implemented a mixed-methods design. Eight focus groups were conducted to collect qualitative data, and the Framework Analysis was used to reveal the experiences and impact of cognitive symptoms.

Predictors of response to low-dose amitriptyline for irritable bowel syndrome and efficacy and tolerability according to subtype: post hoc analyses from the ATLANTIS trial.

Background: Low-dose amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA), was superior to placebo for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) in the AmitripTyline at Low-dose ANd Titrated for Irritable bowel syndrome as Second-line treatment (ATLANTIS) trial.

Objective: To perform post hoc analyses of ATLANTIS for predictors of response to, and tolerability of, a TCA.

Design: ATLANTIS randomised 463 adults with IBS to amitriptyline (232) or placebo (231).

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 spike antibody positivity on infection and hospitalisation rates in immunosuppressed populations during the omicron period: the MELODY study.

Background: In the UK, booster COVID-19 vaccinations have been recommended biannually to people considered immune vulnerable. We investigated, at a population level, whether the absence of detectable anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike protein IgG antibody (anti-S Ab) following three or more vaccinations in immunosuppressed individuals was associated with greater risks of infection and severity of infection.

Methods: In this prospective cohort study using UK national disease registers, we recruited participants with solid organ transplants (SOTs), rare autoimmune rheumatic diseases (RAIRDs), and lymphoid malignancies.

Revisiting the electrophysiological correlates of valence and expectancy in reward processing - A multi-lab replication.

Two event-related brain potential (ERP) components, the frontocentral feedback-related negativity (FRN) and the posterior P300, are key in feedback processing. The FRN typically exhibits greater amplitude in response to negative and unexpected outcomes, whereas the P300 is generally more pronounced for positive outcomes. In an influential ERP study, Hajcak et al.

The Physicochemical and Rheological Properties of Green Banana Flour-Wheat Flour Bread Substitutions.

Functional foods are currently receiving increasing popularity in diet modification. Green bananas contain far more dietary fiber (DF) and resistant starch (RS) than mature bananas. The potential for integrating these vital components into food, such as bread, has expanded.

Novel Fibre-Rich Breads Yield Improved Glucose Release Curves and Are Well Accepted by Children in Primary School Breakfast Clubs.

Background: The average fibre consumption of 4-10-year-old children in the UK is 14.6 g per day, with only 14% of these children reaching the 20 g recommended by the SACN (UK Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition), and this 'fibre gap' may be most pronounced in communities with the lowest socioeconomic status. School breakfast clubs target children from disadvantaged communities, but their provision may favour lower-fibre foods, due to perceptions that children will reject higher-fibre foods.

Exercise Training in Heart Failure: Current Evidence and Future Directions.

Heart Failure (HF) is a prevalent condition which places a substantial burden on healthcare systems worldwide. Medical management implemented with exercise training (ET) plays a role in prognostic and functional capacity improvement. The aim of this review is to determine the effect of exercise training (ET) on HFpEF and HFrEF patients as well as exercise modality recommendations in frail and sarcopenic subpopulations.

Mortality in Antinuclear Antibody-Positive Patients with and Without Rheumatologic Immune-Related Disorders: A Large-Scale Population-Based Study.

: To explore the potential association between positive ANA serology and all-cause mortality in a large cohort of patients, including those with and without rheumatological conditions and other immune-related diseases. : A retrospective cohort study analyzed all-cause mortality among 205,862 patients from Clalit Health Services (CHS), Israel's largest health maintenance organization (HMO). We compared patients aged 18 and older with positive ANA serology (n = 102,931) to an equal number of ANA-negative controls (n = 102,931).

Physicochemical Characterization, Storage Stability Behavior, and Intestinal Bioaccessibility of Clove Extract Encapsulated Using Varying Combinations of Gum Arabic and Maltodextrin.

Clove (, L.) is a rich source of polyphenols and antioxidants, but its intense flavor, poor solubility, and instability may limit its widespread and efficient use in industrial applications. In a series of laboratory-scale experiments, gum Arabic (GA) and maltodextrin (MD) were used as coating agents in various proportions (ranging from 0MD:100GA to 100MD:0GA) for encapsulation of clove extract using a freeze-drying method.

Critical raw material-free multi-principal alloy design for a net-zero future.

Refractory High-Entropy Alloys (RHEAs), such as NbMoTaW, MoNbTaVW, HfNbTaZr, ReHfNbTaW, NbTiAlVTaHfW, TiNbMoTaW (x = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.

Embedding cultural competence in dental education.

Cultural competence plays a pivotal role in dentistry and is increasingly recognised and studied worldwide. As the dental profession evolves to cater to an ever-diverse society, it is imperative that universities consider how they support students in acquiring the skillset for providing culturally sensitive care. Cultural competency in dental education is highly variable globally.

Takayasu arteritis: a geographically distant but immunologically proximal MHC-I-opathy.

Takayasu arteritis, a granulomatosis vasculitis with a pathogenesis that is poorly defined but known to be associated with HLA-B*52, shares many features with other MHC-I-opathies. In addition to the shared clinical features of inflammatory bowel diseases, cutaneous inflammation, and HLA-B*52, is shared association of an IL12B single- nucleotide polymorphism encoding the common IL-12 and IL-23 p40 subunit, which might affect not only type 17 cytokine responses, but also IFNγ and TNF production-the cardinal type 1 cytokines in granuloma formation. Considering the translational context of responses to TNF inhibition in Takayasu arteritis, in this Personal View we propose Takayasu arteritis as a type 1 MHC-I-opathy.

Post-growth: the science of wellbeing within planetary boundaries.

There are increasing concerns that continued economic growth in high-income countries might not be environmentally sustainable, socially beneficial, or economically achievable. In this Review, we explore the rapidly advancing field of post-growth research, which has evolved in response to these concerns. The central idea of post-growth is to replace the goal of increasing GDP with the goal of improving human wellbeing within planetary boundaries.

Invisible Monitoring for Athlete Health and Performance: A Call for a Better Conceptualization and Practical Recommendations.

Background: Practices to routinely monitor athletes are rapidly changing. With the concurrent exponential rise in wearable technologies and advanced data analysis, tracking training exposures and responses is widespread and more frequent in the athlete-coach decision-making process. Within this scenario, the concept of invisible monitoring emerged, which was initially vaguely defined as testing athletes without testing them.

Low oxygen but dynamic marine redox conditions permitted the Cambrian Radiation.

Whether metazoan diversification during the Cambrian Radiation was driven by increased marine oxygenation remains highly debated. Repeated global oceanic oxygenation events have been inferred during this interval, but the degree of shallow marine oxygenation and its relationship to biodiversification and clade appearance remain uncertain. To resolve this, we interrogate an interval from ~527 to 519 Ma, encompassing multiple proposed global oceanic oxygenation events.

Diabetes Risk After Treatment for Childhood and Young Adult Cancer.

Objective: Diabetes is a potential late consequence of childhood and young adult cancer (CYAC) treatment. Causative treatments associated with diabetes have been identified in retrospective cohort studies but have not been validated in population-based cohorts. Our aim was to define the extent of diabetes risk and explore contributory factors for its development in survivors of CYAC in the United Kingdom.

Systematic Fluorination Is a Powerful Design Strategy toward Fluid Molecular Ferroelectrics.

Ferroelectric nematic (N) liquid crystals combine liquid-like fluidity and orientational order of conventional nematics with macroscopic electric polarization comparable in magnitude to solid-state ferroelectric materials. Here, we present a systematic study of twenty-seven homologous materials with various fluorination patterns, giving new insight into the molecular origins of spontaneous polar ordering in fluid ferroelectric nematics. Beyond our initial expectations, we find the highest stability of the N phase to be in materials with specific fluorination patterns rather than the maximal fluorination, which might be expected based on simple models.

Diffusion weighted imaging to predict longer term response in Crohn's disease patients commencing biological therapy: Results from the MOTILITY Trial.

Objectives: Predicting longer term response to biological therapy for small bowel Crohn's disease (SBCD) is an unmet clinical need. Diffusion-weighted MR imaging (DWI) may indicate disease activity, but its predictive ability, if any, is unknown. We investigated the prognostic value of DWI for one year response or remission (RoR) in SBCD patients commencing biologic therapy, including incremental value over C-reactive protein (CRP) and faecal calprotectin (FC).

Pregnancy with a Left Ventricular Assist Device: A Narrative Review.

This narrative review discusses the various challenges associated with the presence of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) during pregnancy. Given the hemodynamic and coagulation changes associated with pregnancy, the presence of an LVAD adds a layer of complexity with respect to optimal management. This review will discuss the anesthetic considerations when dealing with this subset of patients who may have other comorbidities alongside their advanced heart failure.

The prevalence and immune response to coinfection by avian haemosporidians in wild Eurasian blackbirds .

Coinfection of a host by more than 1 parasite is more common than single infection in wild environments and can have differing impacts, although coinfections have relatively rarely been quantified. Host immune responses to coinfection can contribute to infection costs but are often harder to predict than those associated with single infection, due to the influence of within-host parasite–parasite interactions on infection virulence. To first quantify coinfection in a common bird species, and then to test for immune-related impacts of coinfection, we investigated the prevalence and immune response to avian haemosporidian (genera: , and ) coinfection in wild blackbirds.

Efficacy of spray flushing in the reprocessing of flexible endoscopes.

This article comments on the article by Du , who conducted a randomized controlled trial aiming at evaluating the effectiveness of a novel spray flushing system in cleaning flexible endoscopes while minimizing damage to the working channels. We share our perspective on the importance of improving endoscope reprocessing methods. The findings highlight the spray flushing system's capacity to improve cleaning efficacy while minimizing damage, suggesting that it might be important in enhancing endoscope reprocessing procedures.